Ultimately the party endorsed him. But at this year's gala, members sounded regretful.

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"This unsavory alliance between our governor and a Senate Republican conference propped up by real estate and hedge fund billionaires must be broken," said W.F.P. president Bill Lipton during his remarks. "We will hold the governor accountable for the promises he made last year. We have not forgotten those hard-won commitments."

"We made a decision [to endorse him] at the time because we believed that it was more important to flip the State Senate," he elaborated later to a few reporters. "We fell short, the governor did not do what we hoped—what he said—he was going to do to help us. He's admitted that. Obviously we're deeply disappointed and frustrated with that. I think us going forward, we don't forget these things. We're committed next year to actually flipping the Senate and picking up that agenda right where it left and pressuring the governor to work with us."

Also during the program, occasional Cuomo critic Eric Schneiderman, the Democratic state attorney general, made some fun of certain unattributed comments made in the press by "a top Cuomo administration official."

"I have a statement from a highly placed source in the Cuomo administration," he said, pausing for guffaws from the audience.

"This is anonymous, so we have no idea, but it says: 'Bertha [Lewis] and Dan [Cantor] are the two worst trouble and biggest pains in the ass in the entire state,'" he said to laughs, as well as cheers for Lewis and Cantor, who were being honored. "'You can't buy them, you can't bully them—how does business get done in Albany? One hand washes the other. When you wash hands with these two, you wash your hand then look down and you're missing two fingers!' Anonymous, highly placed source."

(Schneiderman left through a back door and avoided reporters.)

Public Advocate Letitia James said would not say whether the party regretted endorsing Cuomo.

"You're gonna have to speak to the leadership of the W.F.P," she told several reporters. "Let me just say that right now if you speak to anyone with respect to the outcome ... 'the big ugly' really did not benefit most New Yorkers, particularly tenants."

She did say, "I don't think it serves the interest of anyone to have the governor and the mayor of the city of New York exchanging these barbs."

City Comptroller Scott Stringer said that New York City should be "enraged" at the rent law renewal as passed. Asked if an "unsavory alliance" between the governor and Senate Republicans contributed to the outcome, he said, "I'm not gonna characterize the blame game."

Stringer also called on the governor and Mayor Bill de Blasio to reconcile.

"I have great respect for the mayor and the governor, and I know they want to do right by this city and this state," he said. "The bottom line is we need to put the politics aside. We need to be grownups. ... Each of these leaders is capable of doing great things."

The W.F.P. held the gala at BRIC House in Brooklyn. The party's national communications director, Joe Dinkin, said that over 600 people signed in. The crowd filled the theater, where the program was held, as well as the gallery, where staff served drinks and food.

Attendees drank wine and beer from the tap, served by members of the party's canvassing team, and ate Dinosaur B.B.Q. (Perhaps ironically, a pending class-action lawsuit against the restaurant alleges that it doesn't pay its tipped workers a legal wage.)

Among the attendees were state comptroller Tom DiNapoli, council members Brad Lander, Jumaane Williams, Jimmy Van Bramer and Laurie Cumbo, 32BJ SEIU president Hector Figueroa, Demos president Heather McGhee and outgoing Professional Staff Congress first vice president Steve London.

Mike Boland, the operative who was party temporarily fired by the W.F.P. leadership for breaking with the party to manage Zephyr Teachout's insurgent campaign for governor, circled the room. Several other former aides to Teachout were present in various capacities.

During the program, senior party leaders also honored four young activists: Jason Gomez, Jose Lopez, Jasmin Gripper and Erika Peterson.

CORRECTION: The original version of this article included City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito among the officials in attendance, based on the fact that she was announced by the M.C. According to her spokesman, she wasn't there.